When they were teenagers, Quinn MacGregor and Aaron Larsen fell in love over the course of one magical summer. It ended in bloodshed and tragedy. Now, ten years later, Quinn is back in Spruce Creek, Nevada, to inherit his family’s criminal cartel. His cousin Jimmy has been making friends -- and enemies -- in dangerous places, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy to hand over leadership to Quinn. And Jimmy might not be the only one who wants Quinn out of the way for good, especially if Quinn’s secret comes out. Aaron Larsen is back in Spruce Creek to sell his former family home. Aaron lost a leg in Afghanistan, and he’s drinking too much and battling depression and PTSD. The last thing he needs is for Quinn MacGregor to drop back into his miserable life. But when Quinn is shaken by the news that he left more behind in Spruce Creek than his bad memories, he turns to Aaron like it’s old times, and Aaron doesn’t know how to say no. The events of ten years ago cast a long shadow, and in a town where they can’t trust anyone else, Quinn and Aaron just might have to learn to trust each other again.

A Desperate Man

“I need to leave, Aaron. I need to get the fuck out of this town, away from…away from all of them! Away from everything!”


Aaron had threaded his fingers through Quinn’s long hair and made a million promises to the boy he loved, and Quinn’s tears had shone in the moonlight. And then, later, every single one of those promises had been shattered by a bullet in the night.


Aaron reached for his prosthetic leg and slammed the closet shut.


He wedged his leg under his chin as he made his way carefully downstairs again. He knew better than to try to put it on from ground level. He needed a chair.


In the kitchen, the tap was dripping: another broken thing to fix.


Chapter 13